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Topic: Horseradish and Rhubarb growers? (Read 6961 times)

Anyone grow horseradish or Rhubarb? I would like to get up to five tubers of each, and work out a trade or barter for them. If anyone can help me out, you can send me a private message. If it's not too late I'd like to still get them in the ground soon.Thank you.

Bjornbee. Good luck, I hope someone near to you can help out. If I was American I could, but the Canadian border, to put to the post, who knows.

I grow masses of horseradish and rhubarb. As a matter of fact, I dug out a whole wack of horseradish root yesterday and made my yummy horse radish for our family roast beef dinner. It was quite hot. I still can't figure out if it is the old root or the new roots that are so spicy. Sometimes it is so mild I have to add wasabi to it to spice it up. I love that flavour of fresh horseradish. If the border were not a problem.....lots would be coming your way. These can be planted any old time, just as long as the ground is not too frozen to dig a deep hole to put them in,good luck in your travel through search. Have a wonderful day, great health and life. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Horseradish :-X. Sorry dont like the stuff. Rhubarb now your talking. I just started to plants this year, one dig good the other not so. I plan on planting a mess of Rhubar this spring in the area the one did good in. If you let Rhubarb flower and go to seed does it do anything for the bees?

Cindi can vouch for this, I have a row of rhubarb 20 feet by 2 feet that grows over 3 feet high. I'm currently composting the droppings from the rabbits on the rhubarb...should be able to get it 4 feet high next year. I grow enough to give an arm load to everyone who visits and still freeze and can gallons of the stuff, beside what we eat fresh.As for Horseradish, once you plant it, you have it forever. Just a small piece of root can grow a new plant. I dug up some beside the garage and transplanted 2 small shoots down by the barn, processed some and gave about 6 lbs of it away to family and friends. I now have horseradish in 4 places, 2 spots by the barn, the original sight beside the garage, and the middle of the compost pile where we dropped the waste.You want some I'll dig up a root in the spring, wrap in a damp paper towel and mail it to you.

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Life is a school. What have you learned? :brian: The greatest danger to our society is apathy, vote in every election!

"I still can't figure out if it is the old root or the new roots that are so spicy. Sometimes it is so mild I have to add wasabi to it to spice it up."

When you process the root do it with alittle water and add the salt and vinigar after its ground. The longer you wait to add the vinigar the hotter it gets. I make it everyyear but this year my wife did it while I was at work. She ran it through the food processer with the vinigar already in it and it is very weak. One more suggestion is grind it out side. Fresh stuff will take your beath away

Horseradish is hotter the longer you leave it in the ground for the winter. I think spring would be the hottest. My dad always had a bunch of it, it spreads pretty fast.

My dad would dig it for my mom to grind...whoo boy! You couldn't go into the kitchen while grinding, and my mom would need to dash in there to turn the blender on and off. Every breath burns, tears streaming down her face.

Then when we had freinds over we'd open the container and ask them to take a whiff...OWWW! Like taking a sniffer of ammonia, burning the sinuses! That stuff is wicked. A little fresh goes a long way.

Yep, I can vouch for Brian's rhubarb patch, man oh man, it was enormous!!! And the manures that he feeds them, well, say no more, they love to feed!!! Brian asked me if I wanted some, eeks!!! Couldn't take any, I have more than enough at my place, that to take some, well, that just didn't make any sense, hee, hee. Brian has got a whole lotta good stuff goin' on at his place, barnyard critters of all sorts; and food from the ground, yeah!!!

OK, Dan, I am going to take your advice with the processing of the horse radish, gonna go and get some today and see if I can get it really hot!!! There is nothing more yummy than the taste of the fresh horse radish. Oh eeks, 7:00 A.M. and my mouth is watering for horseradish!!!

I read in my travels, that if you peel the horseradish under running cool water that the eye burnin', nose runnin' stuff is not so bad. I peel mine under cool water and haven't yet had to use a towel to wipe my nose or eyes, hee, hee.

I think that I must have been making a mistake when processing mine. I would process with oil and vinegar to get it emulsified. I am now thinking that oil is not even necessary. The vinegar I will add after it has been mashed up.

Rick, I bet that is right too, the wintertime cold probably does increase the heat.

Now I am wondering. If the root were dug, placed in the freezer for a bit, would it make that chemical change that would make it hot...gonna have to a little experimenting here this winter.

I can't wait to make the horseradish hot. My Sister is such a "hot" gal (well, actually, she is pretty hot too), but I meant that she loves hot stuff. She just can't seem to get things hot enough, so I have tried to rock her socks, but have not yet succeeded. Maybe this type of horseradish processing may get those socks rocked off, I can't wait to get her to try my "new and improved" recipe, hee, hee. Oh yes, gonna have some fun. Have a wonderful and most awesome day, great health. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Many years ago when i lived in Wisconsin I knew a older gentalman that made the stuff so hot it was almost un-etible. He alway claimed fertalizing with chicken manure did it for him. Honest to god his was so hot I never saw a single person that could eat a spoonful. He labeled it atomic hot and it was

"I still can't figure out if it is the old root or the new roots that are so spicy. Sometimes it is so mild I have to add wasabi to it to spice it up."

When you process the root do it with alittle water and add the salt and vinigar after its ground. The longer you wait to add the vinigar the hotter it gets. I make it everyyear but this year my wife did it while I was at work. She ran it through the food processer with the vinigar already in it and it is very weak. One more suggestion is grind it out side. Fresh stuff will take your beath away

Strong horseradish can even make an Oyster Cry. Peeling it underwater is a good idea as it keeps the juice off the hands, it's the juice, like with an onion, that creates the tears. A good batch of horseradish makes a onion seem whimpy when it comes to producing tears.

Many years ago when i lived in Wisconsin I knew a older gentalman that made the stuff so hot it was almost un-etible. He alway claimed fertalizing with chicken manure did it for him. Honest to god his was so hot I never saw a single person that could eat a spoonful. He labeled it atomic hot and it was

True, Poultry manure seems to affect the hotness for some reason, if you want it more mild try fertilizing it with rabbit droppings. The process I was taught was to wash it off after digging it up, let it set a day or 2 for the skin to dry a tad so peeling is easier, then cut into chunks and run it through the grinder/porcessor. Then if you want creamed horseradish you ran it back through the grinder a 2nd time while adding vinegar and sour cream or mayonaise.

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Life is a school. What have you learned? :brian: The greatest danger to our society is apathy, vote in every election!

I like the sour cream idea Brian. I'll have to try that next year. As for getting a root to start a new patch, I'm wondering if one bought at the local meijers store would grow. For someone that want to start a patch and cant find a pc of root it would be worth a try. The roots that i see at our meijers are large enough to make a small jar and still have enough to through a few pc's in the ground.

Dan, oh you can bet your bottom dollar that root would grow. But, there is a big but.........the root should be facing the right direction to grow properly. I would imagine that the roots would grow the right way eventually, but if the root stock was upside down in the earth, once planted, it may take a bit longer to get the green growth growing.

Comments here from root growers would be a good thing, hint, hint, bring those comments on, pleeeeze.

I know when I plant roots that I have dug up and have no clue which way may end up with them, I always cut the part of the root that would go in the ground first on an angle, that way I know that is the direction that part of the root should grow. Does this make sense? Well, it does to me, hee, hee (and that really is all that matters, me in my muddled-up-mind, hee, hee).

OK, here I go again, experimentation mode. I have aged chicken manure and I have aged rabbit manure (I know that rabbit is not hot like chicken and can be used right away, I think that turkey is the same). Maybe I will be in three mode experimentation.

I will dig up some roots, all the same size, plant in different places and add these three types of manures. It is gonna take until next fall for me to get some really good results. So, anyone wanna be patient, for that time tested and true test......I can do that, I have the patience that would end all patience, hee, hee. Have a wonderful, awesome, great day, what more can I say, oh yes, great health wishes to us all. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Horseradish :-X. Sorry dont like the stuff. Rhubarb now your talking. I just started to plants this year, one dig good the other not so. I plan on planting a mess of Rhubar this spring in the area the one did good in. If you let Rhubarb flower and go to seed does it do anything for the bees?

I scanned a few books, including probably one of the best collections of information on plants in regards to honey (American Honey Plants by Frank C Pellett) and not one mention of rhubarb.

Cindi can vouch for this, I have a row of rhubarb 20 feet by 2 feet that grows over 3 feet high. I'm currently composting the droppings from the rabbits on the rhubarb...should be able to get it 4 feet high next year. I grow enough to give an arm load to everyone who visits and still freeze and can gallons of the stuff, beside what we eat fresh.As for Horseradish, once you plant it, you have it forever. Just a small piece of root can grow a new plant. I dug up some beside the garage and transplanted 2 small shoots down by the barn, processed some and gave about 6 lbs of it away to family and friends. I now have horseradish in 4 places, 2 spots by the barn, the original sight beside the garage, and the middle of the compost pile where we dropped the waste.You want some I'll dig up a root in the spring, wrap in a damp paper towel and mail it to you.

Thank you for the offer. If I can not find any sooner or if you are not willing to send some now (hint, hint... :roll: ), I'll be mentioning this in the spring. I'll reimburse you shipping plus make it well worth your efforts.

Oh, I forgot to mention this about horseradish. Once the plant matures somewhat it gets a most pretty white flower. Now that flower is highly fragrant, but I have not yet seen a bee on this lovely flower, maybe it smells differently to a bee than to the human nostril. Beautiful day, life and health. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Oh, I forgot to mention this about horseradish. Once the plant matures somewhat it gets a most pretty white flower. Now that flower is highly fragrant, but I have not yet seen a bee on this lovely flower, maybe it smells differently to a bee than to the human nostril. Beautiful day, life and health. Cindi

Should one let it flower? Seems, the value is in the edible tuber, or the fact you can propagate. Would flowering diminish the plant or quality? Or does the plant just grow just as good the following year?

Bjornbee. Horseradish is such an invasive growing plant, I don't think that it would matter one little whitt whether the plant was allowed to flower or not. I have always let the flower be. I know with so many plants that the flowers should always be deadheaded or removed to preserve the underground growing roots, to make stronger plants, and to promote further blooms. But horseradish is one dilly of a root grower. So, if you ever have the horseradish go to make a flower, I would not worry about it one tiny little bit. Enjoy that flower, the fragrance, and hope that maybe a bee or two may enjoy it as well. You will see with horseradish the profuseness of the growing habit.

Ever grown comfrey or seen it grow? Well, I can equate the rapid underground growth of horseradish to comfrey and how it can spread if unchecked.

With my horseradish patch, I am constantly digging up around it, severing the roots, it spreads underground by roots that can get very long. Many people I have heard grow horseradish in large, large containers so it does not spread. Personally, I don't bother. It can grow to its heart content. I have had it growing in the same spot for over 15 years and it has not really wandered more than say about 6 feet. Half way through summer I cut back about 3/4 of the leaves, they are what take up so much room. Wish I had a picture that I could show you, but do not. Anyways, you'll be lovin' that horseradish, not a doubt in my mind. Beautiful day, life and health, Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Brian, your ground is still soft, I would imagine. Don't wait for spring to send Bjornbee a few roots. If he wants some, get them to him now. Sometimes the best time to plant is in the dormant season, when there is plenty of moisture to nourish the roots underground. The roots can be those small side ones too, remember that, even those small little roots will make some pretty good sized roots for him by this summer coming up, smiling. Have a wonderful life, day, health. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service